It is a beautiful morning. Birds are singing along with the wind blowing the trees. The flowers still wet with fresh dew are blooming. Half the golden sunlight made through the very fabric of the yurt. Giving the interior a tint of yellow.
The smell of his mother's cooking and the noises of the busy morning in the village wakes up the young mixed wolf, Ajag. He yawns and stretches on his bed before getting off, scratching his belly. Although the air is cold, he washes his face with the water in the bucket by the central mast. He makes sure to scrub his eyes and his ears just like his mother taught him.
Rubbing his eyes on his way out, he opens the curtains to his yurt. The smell of steak and satay spoils his nose. He can feel the drool behind his lips.
"Good morning mo..."
Ajag stares, body stiff as a statue, at his mother's standing limp body. A long metal staff, sharpened to a long spike at both ends pierces through her. A figure, in all black, except for the white gloves and white bunny mask is holding the weapon which stole his mother's life. Her blood flows down the shaft and drips from the lower end.
Only now does he realize the sounds aren't from wolves doing their morning business. They are running, screaming, and crying in fear. Figures in black-and-white wielding long deadly weapons slaughter all the villagers, painting the yurts, grass, and trees crimson. Wolves are being cut, sliced, crushed, stabbed, and exploded.
The bunny mask turned to him. They're staring at each other. Ajag wants to scream, but before any noise comes out, his throat is shut by the other end of the bunny's weapon, piercing through his nape.
Ajag knows what these creatures are. They are demons. Demons that all hatch from one giant egg. Demons that live beyond the great wall. Demons that will get him if he goes too far from the village. Demons that, though smaller than a wolf, especially when one stands upright, their weapons are deadlier than anything. Just like in his mother's stories.
There are two ways to get away from the demons. One is to hide and hold your breath until they're gone. Ajag can't do that now. The other way is to let them hurt you, very, very bad, then pretend you're dead. So, Ajag, despite being so scared he's literally pissing himself, despite being in so much pain, both from being stabbed and from seeing his mother's lifeless body being stabbed, his eyes become red waterfalls, stays as calm as he can.
He relaxes, goes limp, and falls down. Though the metal sliding on his bloody flesh is painful. Though the spike cuts his lips as he falls off. Ajag holds back his scream. His own blood drips on his face as he lays unmoving.
Bunny-mask looks at him. He holds his breath. A few seconds later the demon looks away, points around, and chases another wolf. Ajag keeps playing dead.
There are still so many demons. A whole army of them. His tears mix with blood. Both coming out of his eyes. He's too scared to feel the otherwise unbearable pain from his hollow neck.
1 minute passes. 2 minutes pass. 5 minutes pass. 10 minutes pass. He feels it. The rumbling. The ground trembles as the great-roaring-cart-beasts approach. They are gigantic. They look like 4 wheeled carts but move on their own, and they always roar whenever they move. From these beasts come out more demons. Cart demons. They collect wolves who were killed by demons. Once they carry you away, there's no coming back.
3 are approaching Ajag. He needs to go away. How? What can he do? He's a mixed wolf, and his parents are also mixed wolves. He has no talents. He's not as strong as an autumn wolf, he's not as quick and agile as a spring wolf, he can't breathe fire like a summer wolf, nor can he shoot ice from his eyes like a winter wolf. What can he do?
The cart demons are right next to him. They pick up his mother and put her in their cart. He must do something, quick! Run. He can only run. He must run. It's now or never.
So, he runs. He gets up and runs as fast as he can. Away from the village. Into the woods. On all fours. He runs and he runs. He's much faster than the cart demons chasing him.
He got hit on the head, knocking him over. Ajag rubs where he was hit before looking. His eyes widen. It's bunny-mask. He cowers back before hitting one of the cart demon's legs. He's surrounded.
Bunny-mask lifts its weapon. Ajag wants to scream, but only now does he realize he can't. The only sound he's making is a painful wet gargling hissing trill through the hole on his nape. As the demon is about to go down for a stab, it is knocked away.
The cart demons seem to freak out and look around. One after another, they are whipping their heads, limbs, and bodies around as if something's hitting them. They all fall down. Something's grabbing Ajag, but he can't see it.
He floats up and away, but not before bunny-mask gets back on its feet and swings and twirls its spike-staff around, hitting... something. Hitting Ajag's rescuer. On the back. The spike slashed Ajag's rescuer on her back.
The wound bleeds out. From it, the figure of the wolves becomes visible. Like an invisible sponge absorbing color. It's a gray wolf. A spring wolf. A spring wolf that can, somehow, become invisible.
Both of them, Ajag and the spring wolf, are thrown off by the slash. Ajag falls on his back. The spring wolf falls on her face. Bunny-mask quickly approaches for a killing stab. A big spring wolf leaps in, grabs and bites the weapon, and swings it and its wielder away.
"Hawu, are you ok? We got all the survivors, let's leave, now!" The large spring wolf grabs Hawu's arm, helping her stand.
"Good. Thanks, Lawu. I'm fine, I'll run on my own. You carry the pup," Hawu says.
"You sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure. I got hit on my back, my legs are fine. I'll just feral run."
"Ok, let's go quick," Lawu picks up Ajag and leaves as quick as his arrival, along with his sister, Hawu.
Bunny-mask chases them. He's right at the edge of the woods when...
"Captain!"
...someone calls him. he stops and turns around to find a janitor agent handing him a transceiver.
"The colonel is requesting you."
The captain takes the device. "This is captain Jaxon speaking, over."
"..."
"Yes sir, the area is cleared. Some got away, but we still managed to get more than enough bodies. The woodcutters also just arrived on time," trees begin to fall behind the captain while he's on the radio with his superior.
Hawu and Lawu sprint along the woods to the camp. For any other types of wolves, it would've taken at least 30 minutes, but for spring wolves, they only need 6. In the camp are survivors sitting and laying all around. Several spring wolves are tending to the injured. A lot of them are crying, pups and adults alike. The air smells of blood and medicine.
"Hey, what's your name?" Lawu asks Ajag, but Ajag can only make wet hisses and gargles. "Ok, ok, shh shh shh. You'll make your throat worse. I'll leave you here, ok?" Lawu puts Ajag down. The pup nods and Lawu gives him a pat. "You're so brave and strong. You should be proud of that."
"Hey! Can we get a medic here? This pup lost his neck!" Hawu shouts. A spring wolf comes with a leather bag and takes care of Ajag.
Hawu and Lawu walk away from the mess and sit under a tree. The wind is chill and the sunlight gentle.
Lawu sighs, "That's the fourth one this week. If this keeps up, we'll lose our home too."
"Well, what do you suggest?" Hawu says, eyes and voice squinted.
"Start fighting back! You're gonna be the next Springmaster, don't you have a say about any of this?"
"Forget it, the Springmaster won't listen," Hawu throws a rock at a tree.
"Have you tried?"
"Yes! And you know what she says? She told me to shut up and never talk about it ever again."
"Well, maybe now that they've made it to Atban she will listen."
"I doubt it," Hawu sighs. "Honestly, the celestial wolf would probably somehow return before she will ever change her mind."
"So, what you're saying is, you believe in a legend more than in yourself."
"First of all, It's a hyperbolic analogy. Second of all, no, I'm saying the stories are less improbable than Katun is a coward. Third of all, it's not just a legend, bro. There are literally historical records of the celestial wolf, it's a thing."
"And it hasn't been since before our parents were born."
"If that's how you see it, that's how hopeless it is trying to get through to Katun."
Lawu declares defeat with a sigh and scratches his head. "I am too tired for this."
"Yeah, me too. I really hope there's a solution."
Lawu gives no response. Between the silence, the exhaustion, and the gentle breeze is a very comfortable condition. The wolf siblings slowly fall into an early nap under the tree. At some point, one of the spring wolves wakes them up because it's time for everyone to move to a nearby village.